International honorary nursing society inducts Radford 2018 class

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Keynote speaker Christi Callahan, associate professor of nursing, welcomes a colleague into the Epsilon Psi chapter of the Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing.

At a ceremony on April 14 in Kyle Hall, Radford University nursing students were inducted into the Epsilon Psi chapter of the Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing.

The 29-member 2018 class represents nurses at various career stages: nurse leaders/Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)/graduate students, Bachelor of Science-Nursing (BSN) students and Registered Nurses (RN)-to-BSN students.

During the induction ceremony, candidates were presented with the society’s commemorative purple and white honor cord and entered their names in the chapter induction book, which contains signatures of every inductee since the chapter's inception in 1982.

Christi Callahan, assistant professor of nursing, keynoted the ceremony.

“You have prepared yourself for a challenging profession in which you must be ingenious, industrious, a team player, a listener and a patient advocate. A nurse must be all of them,” said Callahan to the more than 300 senior nursing students, family and friends in the Kyle Hall multi-purpose room.

A family party of 11 joined senior nursing student Daysha Williams of Midlothian for the initiation ceremony

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One of 29 School of Nursing student signs on to the roll and joins 35 years of nursing colleagues in the Radford chapter of the Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing.

“Nursing has been an eye-opening experience for me,” Williams siad, who aspires to be a critical care nurse in an emergency room and continue her nursing education at the graduate level. “I worked hard and did a lot of it. The nursing faculty really clicked with me. They have always been encouraging and there for me.”

Harley Wilson of Pearisburg will graduate in May and begin her professional career in the Neurotrauma ICU at Roanoke Memorial.

“I never thought I could do it, but I did,” Wilson said. “My professors really helped push us through a tough program. They care and they want us to succeed.”

The 2018 class of STTI inductees were Haley Burns, Vanessa Calevro, Samantha Clark, Alison Cote, Delanie Cook, Mary Crowell, Darby Farrish, Kelsey Gibberson, Briana Graham, Heather Hurd, Aubrey Kessner, Cassidy McRorie, Santanna Miller, Amanda Ridder, Kenna Robertson, Emily Sharp, Danielle Stinson, Gayle Stockes, Karen Taylor, Deja Wheeler, Beth Williams, Daysha Williams, Harley Wilson, Rachel Dalton, Julia Graham, Natalie Mithell, Amber Schackel and Shannon Souther.

The Radford Epsilon Psi members are part of an organization that supports the learning, knowledge and professional development of nurses who will make a difference in worldwide health care. STTI has more than 135,000 active members in more than 90 countries and almost 550 chapters, of which Radford was the 144th chapter.

Apr 19, 2018
Don Bowman
(540) 831-5182
dbowman@radford.edu